Blog

Taro Iwamoto draws on his background in athletic training, orthopedic.neurological rehabilitation, and martial arts, his extensive study to become licensed as a PTA, ATC, CSCS and COMS, as well as his experience in practice as an exercise specialist at Olympic Physical Therapy and discusses such issues related to movement, rehabilitation pain, mindfulness, and wellness.

I often get comments from my clients that I have a "perfect posture." I always ask them what the "perfect posture" means, and many say it's perfectly straight. So, straight posture=good posture?? From a perspective of Feldenkrais Method it is a place from which you can initiate action in any direction with minimal preparation. You're basically ready to move any direction from ideal posture. You're not holding tension and staying rigid. I think people tend to confuse posture with position. Position is static. Posture is dynamic. Posture is action. Ideal posture should allow you to move more responsively. In contrast, if you're rigid and holding yourself as straight as you can, you may appear to have a good posture, but you won't be able to move as quickly. Not only that, you are straining muscles as you're making a lot of effort to maintain such a state. Masters of Tai Chi or Aikido all demonstrate great posture if you watch them. They're ready for actions. They are not tense. As a general rule, a good posture should never feel uncomfortable or tiring. Awareness Through Movement class will give you an experience of what it feels to have "good posture" that feels natural and authentic.